About

$70,074

pledged of $20,000 goal

2,739

backers

I’m Charles Waugh, a professional photographer and design engineer in Portland, Oregon. When I became dissatisfied with the available smartphone stabilizers out there, I decided to design one, so now there’s the SlingShot!

Cult of Mac.com"I chuckled when I first saw it. And then I thought, 'that’s actually pretty damn clever.' "

AppAdvice.com"You can count me in on this one, especially since it will be compatible with the next generation iPhone ... Will you back this project? I know I will."

CNET"But if you pledge right now, you can get a SlingShot for as little as $14 -- shipped! That strikes me as pretty solid deal for a gizmo that offers three functions in one -- especially considering that I've seen single-function, iPhone-only tripod mounts selling for a lot more."

AndroidPolice.com"Now, thanks to Kickstarter, we've also found the last camera mounting accessory we'll ever need: the Slingshot, which functions as handheld stabilizer, mini tripod, and professional tripod mount."

The SlingShot(tm) allows you to shoot one-handed, turns into an instant table-top tripod, and allows you to mount your phone on any tripod.

The SlingShot's phone cradle fits ANY smartphone, with or without a case and allows charging cables to be plugged in during use.

It's the perfect Android ANDiPhone accessory.

Here's Charles Waugh reporting from Oregon on what you all want to know:

PLEASE NOTE: The shot of the waterfall is completely unedited - it is straight out of the phone!

Technical details for inquiring minds:

The SlingShot is built to last and LAST...

The SlingShot is injection molded from acetal resin, trade name: Delrin. It's the same stuff that industrial gears and other really tough items are made from. It twists and bends and bounces right back!

And that phone cradle is way cool! Check out this video:

HEY! This was shot on an iPhone using the SlingShot's cradle on a tripod!

The cradle holds ANY smartphone nice and tight, yet gently - even if it has a case on it. Why? Well, fortwo reasons:

First, because it can bend and flex like an Olympic gymnast. It can expand to grab hold of even the Samsung Galaxy Note - the biggest 'phone' out there!

Second, because it has over-molded rubber pads on the tip of each 'wing'. That's just like on your toothbrush handle where there's a rubber area molded over the plastic body. You get the toughness of plastic plus the grippiness of rubber.

BEWARE: Not all cases are created equal...

Some are thin as paper, some are THICKlike my Cousin Bob. The SlingShot's cradle can accept cases up to .660 thick, like this:

And, YES! The cradle will accept all smartphones, even monsters:

Here is a shot (made at an AT&T store) showing a Samsung Galaxy Note in the cradle of a Slingshot. It definitely fits.

We are METAL-HEADS:

The 1/4-20 threaded BRASS insertismolded into the cradle (it is hand-inserted in the mold before the plastic is injected). Which means it's really strong and won't back out of the plastic.

Same story on the 1/4-20 threaded STEEL studin the ball-mount - it plunges right into the heart of the ball and is molded in place as well.

Of course, all of this is part of our patent that we've filed.

BONUS: Here's a video to tell you about the handle in (mildly) excruciating detail:

YUP! This was shot on an iPhone using the SlingShot's cradle on a tripod!

The SlingShot is the culmination of almost a year of thought, design, and patent filing. I’m thrilled with how it’s turned out and I hope you will be too.

Please join with mein getting the SlingShot launched into the wide world - with your help I know it will be a success!

"Just when I thought there couldn't possibly be anything new in this product space that was interesting/cool enough for me to actually back...

Along comes SLINGSHOT! I'm in for 2. :-) "

(For cinematic über nerds only)Here’s a video of me in my shop making a simple wooden ring-chuck to turn the prototype plastic rings that go on the handle. To ‘splain: The rings chuck gets tightened by sliding the ring on which collapses the jaws just a tiny bit, holding the ring all around the perimeter.BTW: the shot is straight out of the iPhone 4S- NO EDITS.Check it out:

This shot was done with the SlingShot's cradle mounted on a rodless cylinder that I got at some garage sale years ago for a song. I put a toggle valve on it to run it back-n-forth, and by adjusting the needle valve on the outlet end, I can control the speed of travel. Too much fun!